LAS VEGAS -- NXTcomm 2008 -- No carrier is more vocal about its next-generation network plans than BT Group plc (NYSE: BT; London: BTA) with its 21CN project. So, why not turn there for some insights into what the network has to do?

At NXTcomm, Light Reading got a chance to chat with Maria Pardee, head of global integration for BT Design. Her part of BT deals in IT services for businesses, an area that's likely to include video-based services and some Web 2.0-style collaboration.

Pardee talked about the challenges involved with video, and about why telepresence is different from the plain old videoconferencing BT has done for years.

She also elaborated on why she's called Web 2.0 a "thing of the past" and how to get telcos to move faster when it comes to fulfilling all these next-generation promises.

Click the play button to start the video.





— Craig Matsumoto, West Coast Editor, Light Reading